The present invention relates to a recording medium for recording main data such as, for example, audio data and a playback device capable of carrying out playback operations corresponding to this recording medium.
Various recording media and recording/playback devices have been disclosed but in particular, well known minidisc (trademark) systems where a user freely records audio data etc. have become widespread.
In the case of minidisc systems, for example, a management region known as a User-Table of Contents (hereinafter referred to as a "U-TOC") is recorded, separate from the main data such as audio etc., for managing regions on the disc where the user carries out recording and managing regions where nothing is recorded.
The recording device then confirms regions where recording can be carried out while referring to the U-TOC, i.e. confirms the addresses of free areas and then records audio data at these free areas.
The playback device can then use the U-TOC to comprehend the program address recorded with audio information etc. to be played back and prescribed playback operations can be carried out.
Each of the programs etc. recorded is managed at the U-TOC in program units and the start and end addresses are listed. The start and end addresses etc. are also listed for recordable areas (free areas) that are as yet un-recorded.
Various modes are also prepared as playback modes for the playback device in addition to the order for playing back the programs. Program playback mode, shuffle playback mode and multi-access playback mode etc. are also provided in addition to the continuous playback mode for carrying out usual playback operations in program number order.
Program playback mode is a mode where the user arbitrarily sets program numbers, with playback then being carried out in the order of this set mode.
Shuffle playback mode is a mode where program numbers are selected randomly by a random number generation operation within the playback device and the selected programs are played back.
Multi-access playback mode is a mode also known as "quick start reproducing" where played-back audio is outputted immediately in response to playback operations for specific programs. Here, "immediately" means the timing excluding the time necessary for starting up the optical head and for making accesses that are necessary in usual program playback operations and is a time where the played back audio is outputted at almost the same time as the playback operation.
Regarding this "quick start reproducing", the present applicant filed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 081588543 on Jan. 18th, 1996. The present applicant also made a related application in the past, of U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 4,530,073.
For example, when program number #1 to program number #5 are taken as the target of the multi-access playback mode, a few seconds of audio data at the head of each program is taken into a memory of a D-RAM etc. beforehand. In doing so, when, for example, playback of program number #3 is carried out the leading data of program number #3 taken in by the memory is first read out. The played-back audio can then be outputted at a time when the starting up of playback of the disc is not yet complete. Starting up and accessing for the disc playback operation can then finish while data played back from the memory is being outputted and the played back audio can then be continued to be outputted in an appropriate manner by continuing to read out data. This multi-access playback mode is a playback mode for application in cases such as the playing back of sound effects in, for example, plays and broadcasts etc. where the timing of the outputting of the played-back audio is extremely important as audio is played back immediately in response to user operations.
In this specification, from a first program to an nth program of the programs recorded on the disc are described as "program #1" to "program #n" with the mark "#" appended. There are also then cases where the program number is then described simply as "#2".
In the program playback mode and the multi-access playback mode, the user can previously set program orders or target programs.
For example, in the operation for program playback mode, the user first designates the program playback order. The designated program playback order is then held by a microprocessor computer within the playback device, with a controller then performing playback of the disc in the designated program order in response to user playback operations.
In multi-access playback mode, the user designates target programs. The numbers of designated target programs are then held by the microprocessor controller within the playback device and the controller takes audio data for the leading few seconds of all of the target programs into memory. After this, the leading portion for the corresponding program is played back immediately from the memory in response to playback operations for a prescribed program performed by the user.
A register for saving the program order is built-into the microprocessor computer. However, data for the order of playing back the programs or for the target programs set by the user is lost when other modes are switched over to, the disc is ejected or when the power supply is turned off, etc. after operations have been carried out in these program playback modes or multi-access playback modes. The user therefore has to input the settings for the program order and the target programs all over again even when carrying out the same program or multi-access playback as for the previous time every time the disc is installed. This is extremely troublesome for the user, particularly when the same program playback and multi-access playback is to be carried out over and over again.
In conventionally executed program playback modes and multi-access playback modes there were only functions for setting the program order and target programs. Setting of, for example, more detailed playback operation control preferable at the time of playback was not possible. Because of this, a greater variety of operation control is to be achieved with regards to the playback of each program at the time of playing back special effects in program playback mode or multi-access playback mode.
In order to resolve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a recording medium having a specific playback mode management region capable of carrying out operation management in each of the various playback modes and a playback device capable of carrying out specific playback mode operations employing this specific playback mode management region.